6 Easy Tips For Avoiding Foods with Gluten

About
one percent of the population are diagnosed with celiac disease, an
autoimmune disorder related to foods with gluten that can wreak havoc on
your digestive tract. Then there are also gluten sensitivities, which a
larger percentage of the population has, causing a number of mysterious
symptoms like bloating, depression, skin issues, and gassiness.

“People
with gluten sensitivity don’t have the long-term and ongoing damage to
the villi of the small intestine that people with celiac disease have;
once gluten is removed from the diet, the symptoms go away,” says
Melissa McLean Jory, a master nutrition therapist and yoga teacher who writes the blog at glutenfreeforgood.com on GaiamLife. “But gluten is hard to break down, period, for all of us.”

If
you think you may have a gluten allergy, remove foods with gluten from
your diet completely and see if it helps, or go to a professional and
find out. Watch out for deficiencies that go along with eating a
gluten-free diet including fiber, iron, folate, niacin, thiamin,
riboflavin, calcium, and B12.

Here are some easy tips that make the process of removing foods with gluten much less difficult:

1. Focus on whole foods

A diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and protein and free of most
processed foods does a lot to reduce your intake of gluten naturally.
It’s better to stick to whole foods rather than going out and buying
every gluten-free processed food you can find. For your starch sides
think rice, quinoa, potatoes, and organic corn.

3. Get label savvy
Learn to read labels
to look for gluten in hidden places. Key words include anything with
wheat, bulgur, malt, barley, pasta, oats, and oat flour. Some
ingredients may have wheat like hydrolyzed plant protein, seasonings,
flavorings, artificial flavors, and artificial colors. Again, buying
foods that are less processed means you’re less likely to deal with
mysterious additives that may contain gluten.

5. Consider a gluten-free phone app
This is especially helpful when you’re out to dinner and you’re not sure what you can order. When you’re unsure, pull out your trusty smartphone app so you don’t accidentally eat gluten.

About the Author

Sara Novak specializes in health and food policy writing for Discovery Health. Her work has also been featured on TreeHugger, HowStuffWorks.com, TLC Cooking, and Animal Planet. After graduating from the Grady School of Journalism at the University of Georgia, Sara headed up the communication efforts for a national scholarship program in Washington, D.C. Sara has also handled copy writing and public relations for a global environmental consulting firm. She loves fiddling with healthful recipes, traveling, and exploring life atop her yoga mat. Today, Sara lives in Charleston with her husband and two lovable cocker spaniels, Madison and Bella.